Biotech, Roundup, Life Sciences
Dendreon’s Manufacturing Challenge, Archus Cuts Deep, Accelerator Company Launches & More Seattle-Area Life Sciences News
Luke Timmerman 5/21/09
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Cancer Research Center, that aims to help doctors predict which cancer drugs will work, and which won’t. This has been the subject of lots of complex genomic research, but founder Jim Olson sees a much simpler way to help doctors pick the best drug.
—CellCyte Genetics, the Bothell, WA-based biotech company, said it has tentatively agreed to settle an SEC investigation. The company, whose stock briefly eclipsed $7 a share in December 2007, is now worth six cents a share.
—CoAptus Medical, the Redmond, WA-based developer of a minimally-invasive method for sealing up heart defects, raised $3 million in new equity to finish animal tests and move into a clinical trial later this year. The company uses radiofrequency waves to heat up and essentially weld flap-like heart defects, which can allow blood clots that pass to the brain and cause strokes, like the one that afflicted New England Patriots linebacker Tedy Bruschi.
—PATH, the Seattle-based nonprofit that aims to improve the health of people in poor countries, has some good news to report on a key program that tackles malnutrition. PATH has helped spark a new market in India for “Ultra Rice,” fortified with iron, that’s now getting in the daily lunches of 60,000 schoolchildren in India, said project manager Dipika Matthias. I first wrote about the Ultra Rice technology, which comes from the lab of a Bellingham, WA-based food scientist, back in August.
—Oncothyreon (NASDAQ: ONTY), the Seattle-based developer of cancer drugs, has been riding a wave of renewed interest in its immunotherapy program since Dendreon reported the field’s first big success in pivotal clinical trial last month. Oncothyreon took advantage by raising another $11 million in new capital. The company already had 12 months of capital in the bank.
—HealthUnity, a Bellevue, WA-based maker of software for connecting health IT systems, raised $2 million out of a $4 million equity financing, according to a regulatory filing.
Luke Timmerman is the National Biotechnology Editor for Xconomy. You can e-mail him at ltimmerman@xconomy.com, call 206-624-2374, or follow him on Twitter at http://twitter.com/ldtimmerman.
